The present invention pertains generally to husking rolls of the type used in corn husking machines in food processing plants.
Corn husking machines utilize cooperating pairs of rolls of grooved, resilient material which counter rotate to provide a bite area to exert a stripping action on the husk of an ear. The rolls jointly propel the stripped ears of corn therealong to a discharge point with the husks being discharged downwardly between the rolls. Such a resilient roll arrangement functions satisfactorily in the processing of most types of sweet corn which has a higher moisture content and is less susceptible to damage than hybrid or seed corn. Subjecting ears of the latter types of corn to the above described aggressive roll configuration results in not only husk removal but also the undesired partial shelling of kernels from the ear to render sweet corn husking machines impractical for husking seed corn or other fragile food articles. Some species of sweet corn are also susceptible to damage and partial shelling by conventional husking rolls.
Previous attempts in the corn processing industry to vary the stripping action of resilient rolls has included the use of paired resilient and non-resilient rolls of like and unlike configuration such as are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,610,634 and 2,180,594. Further the art discloses in U.S. Pat. No. 3,101,720 a husking roll having metal surfaces which coact with a resilient surface of a companion roll for the purpose of releasing an ear held upright between the rolls. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,239,899 and 2,180,594 show a roll with metal and rubber segments on a common shaft. Accordingly it is known in the prior art to use rolls of differing resiliencies and external configurations to husk an ear of corn. Further, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,103,240 and 3,325,878 disclose rolls for processing food articles with metallic and rubber roll components in a single roll member.